Earlier this month, gamers eagerly anticipated the highly anticipated fourth installment of the renowned action role-playing game Diablo. However, their excitement quickly turned into frustration as they discovered that they couldn’t access the game due to a prolonged cyberattack.
The developer of Diablo, Activision Blizzard, fell victim to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack that specifically targeted the servers responsible for user authentication and game connectivity. As a result, popular titles like Diablo IV, World of Warcraft, and Call of Duty became virtually unplayable.
The attack persisted for over 10 hours and Activision Blizzard confirmed on Twitter that it was mitigated late on Sunday. As of now, the identity of the hacker group behind the attack remains undisclosed and no one has claimed responsibility.
Unfortunately, Activision Blizzard has recently experienced recurring cyberattacks, although they were not particularly sophisticated or severely damaging. DDoS attacks, like the one they faced, can temporarily disrupt server operations by overwhelming them with excessive traffic.
Games like Diablo and Overwatch, which rely on constant internet connectivity, are especially vulnerable to cyberattacks. This has sparked criticism within the gaming community, highlighting the disparities in internet access and speed worldwide. Additionally, these games may experience slower loading times during weekends when network traffic is at its peak.
In addition to DDoS attacks, threat actors employ various techniques such as malware distribution and phishing attempts to target unsuspecting victims. Recently, cybersecurity firm Cyble uncovered a malicious Super Mario game installer that was spreading the SupremeBot malware. Threat actors often exploit game installers to spread malware due to the large user bases and the trust users place in them.
Cyble also discovered a phishing campaign in June that specifically targeted Russian-speaking players of Enlisted, a popular multiplayer first-person shooter. The hackers created a fake website resembling the official Enlisted page to distribute ransomware.
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